Ninety Years Deceased
by Kaminari Hoshino
Summary: This is the story of a girl and how she came to obtain the Seven Stars of Byakko.And if who reads this story reads to the end they will be granted a wish,just like the girl in the story.For when the first page is turned,the story itself becomes real. R&R!
1. Default Chapter

Prologue: The Reality of Dreams  
  
"Suzuno Oosugi, have you made up your mind on whether or not you shall consent to our request?"  
A girl stood before the man addressing her, looking up with determined olive green eyes. She had thought the matter over all night, weighing the consequences of her actions.  
"Emperor Tagawa," the girl, Suzuno, spoke in a polite tone of voice, "I, Suzuno Oosugi, accept your request and shall become Sairou's savior and priestess."  
A smiled flashed across the man sitting in front of Suzuno's face. Emperor Tagawa arose and quietly whispered something to his advisor. Then he turned back to Suzuno and stated with odd simplicity, "before you start your journey to assemble the Seven Stars of the great god, Byakko, do you have any questions?"  
Suzuno pulled her braided pigtails over one shoulder and nodded sternly. Last night she had thought all of this through very thoroughly, "you told me an enemy opposes you, although, you made no mention of who they are. I would like to be informed of such things before I...journey..." she hesitated and let out an unnoticeable sigh, she wasn't use to being so formal.  
"Very well, I suppose it's only fair." Tagawa reseated himself in his silver plated throne and stared off at the wall above Suzuno's right ear.  
"This land is separated into four main countries, Hokkan, Kutou, Konan, and Sairou. However, the land extends past these main borders into unclaimed territories. Areas that aren't part of the four countries, but not large or strong enough to become a country themselves." He went on without pause, "One such group to the southeast of Sairou has been gathering. The majority of the territories worship Seiryu, the God of Kutou, though a select few worship Genbu, God of Hokkan. They have been making plans to overthrow the Sairou empire in the name of Seiryu for quite some time now, so long, we never really planned they'd do anything.  
"That was until a few months ago when sixteen towns on the borders of southern Sairou were taken over and the residing citizens captured as slaves. Legend has it that a girl from another world will appear and save our empire in a time of need, which is where you are needed." He looked at Suzuno with piercing bronze eyes, "does that answer your question?"  
Suzuno uttered a quick 'yes' before turning away from Tagawa to the group of random soldiers and townsfolk who had gathered before the Emperor to see him send out Sairou's new Priestess. She let out a long breath of air before walking past the group. Suzuno still wasn't entirely sure this whole thing was real. She would've been completely convinced it was a dream, that was if it hadn't been for Takiko and her father...had it only been yesterday she rediscovered that old, Chinese book in her father's study? The Universe of the Four Gods... 


	2. Chapter OneThe Mind and Heart

Author's Note: Okay, there are a couple things I need to clear with all of you. According to the new Fushigi Yuugi Manga, which Yu Watase is currently writing, Takiko and Suzuno were NEVER friends. (This manga illustrates the journey of Takiko and her gathering of the Genbu Seven) In fact, Takiko was in love with Suzuno's father, and Suzuno was about eight or nine when Takiko disappeared into the book and was later murdered in a suicidal homicide. Also small bits of information came from the TV series, although, most character designs I came up with all on my little own. I do not make any claims on owning or creating Fushigi Yuugi (though believe me, I really wish I did...), that was Yu Watase's idea. As I mentioned in the summary, nearly a year of planning and seven rough drafts were created before I actually finished the first chapter, so please enjoy. Praise what you like, criticize what you don't.  
One other thing. The story explanation I give of Takiko's murder at Genbu Grotto is sort of confusing, as I tell it from Suzuno's point of view...sort of... Those of you who have seen the series of read the manga should remember, but just in case you don't, I'll post the story in more detail at the end of this chapter. So here we go :  
  
Chapter One: Logic of a Sound Mind, Emotions of a True Heart  
Suzuno smiled sheepishly to herself. She wasn't one to be flustered by things she thought were so diminutive, such things as boys. But then again, she had liked him since the second grade, Shigeki Amori. And now Suzuno had finally gathered up enough strength to tell him how she felt, in a small sweet note she had just written.  
Suzuno giggled quietly, placing the folded paper on her nightstand. She would present it to him tomorrow, if she didn't get too flustered. Suzuno remembered reading a girl's, Takiko's, diary after a tragic accident; Takiko had never seemed to have guy troubles... Suzuno hadn't known Takiko terribly well, since she had been so young when it all happened, only about the age of eight. But she did remember afterwards they received a lot of old books from the Okuda family-Takiko's diary being among them.  
The brunette felt a lump forming in her throat at the thought of the teenage girl, Takiko. It had happened nine years ago at Genbu's Grotto. Mr. Okuda, Takiko's father, had murdered himself and his daughter. No one really knew why. Her parents hadn't told Suzuno how it had happened, but she had overheard something about an old Chinese book and priestesses. None of it really made any sense, but Suzuno had tried her very hardest not to think about things like that too much. They made her whole body ache and her eyes well up with tears. Not only that, but it scared her. Especially the day it all happened. She couldn't recall much of it with all the rush of sadness and anger, but her father's warning still stuck strong in her head:  
"_Suzuno, you see this ancient book in my hand? It's a dangerous and murderous weapon. It brings no good to anyone who even steps near it. Listen to me Suzuno, I don't want you ever to read this book, or even hold it in your hand. You aren't going to be permitted to wonder the study without someone else present, is that clear? Stay away from this book_!"  
Why she couldn't touch the harmless little red volume she wasn't entirely sure of. But she had been taught to respect her parents' word, even if it did make no rational sense.  
"Best get off to bed." Suzuno sighed and shut of her lamp with a soft click. The lights faded out leaving the girl alone in the dark to become lost in her own dreams and thoughts, which wasn't a difficult thing to do for a seventeen-year-old girl.   
"I'm leaving!" Suzuno called back to her mother as she began to open the door. No reply came back, none ever did.

Suzuno shrugged and pulled the door open. After taking a few steps inside she realized something. This wasn't the way out of the house; it was her father's study, the place she had been banned from nine years ago.  
"That's strange," Suzuno commented to no one but herself, it was almost like something had rearranged the doorways, "I must not be paying attention." She exited the room and pulled the door shut behind her.  
Walking away, Suzuno felt her heart skip a beat. For some reason an immense feeling of guilt passed through her. Guilty for leaving the study?   
The pig-tailed girl sat in her classes, paying close attention and taking perfect notes as she did every day. But it was harder to concentrate then usual. Her mind kept wandering back to that old book, and that feeling of remorse wouldn't leave her.   
"I'm not feeling so good." Suzuno let out another line of sneezes as the cold winter air brushed past her face again. Reaching into her pocket for a Kleenex she pulled out a handful of papers. One of them, a small, now crumpled, note.  
"Shoot!" she said through another sneeze, "I forgot to give Shigeki the note! Only I could manage to screw this up..." In the next moment another rush of frozen air jostled the paper out of her hand and sent it dancing and twirling into the afternoon sky.  
"Come back!" Suzuno broke into a run in attempt to retrieve the parchment. She couldn't even imagine what would happen if someone saw the note and went telling the whole school about it. This couldn't be happening to her.  
The girl watched in distress as the note slipped inside the crack of a closed window.  
"That's the window to...dad's study." She looked up, her eyes sagging slightly in both despair and frustration. She had spent a long time thinking of what to write on that little note. She just had to get it back. But why did it land in the study, of all places?  
_ Dad's not home yet, Suzuno thought to herself, I could get in the study, find the note and leave before he ever has to know._  
With her mind made up, the girl ran into the house and to the door she had previously visited by mistake that morning. Opening it up a crack she walked in and looked around.  
Tiptoeing through the stacks and piles of books that lined the many shelves of the study, Suzuno spotted the window from which the note had disappeared a few minutes ago. It couldn't have landed far from there...  
Her eyes widened as she heard a loud thump! from behind her. Turning around slowly, not wanting to see what had caused the noise, Suzuno spotted a book lying closed on the floor. The same book her father had told her not to go near, the same book her parents had told her was so murderous and deadly.  
Shuffling along as close to the left shelf as humanly possible, Suzuno edged past the book, trying to completely avoid it. Once she had gotten by it she ran to the next row of shelves. Maybe she could rewrite that note-this was too strange.  
Another thump. Suzuno felt a drop of sweat run down her face and her heartbeat rapidly increase. Peering over her shoulder she saw the book. This time it had landed, open to the first page. She could see the corner of the note poking out from inside the novel as if something had deliberately put it there.  
Allowing her emotions to get the better of her, Suzuno ran forward to the book, in hopes to retrieve the letter. She looked over the first page, reading it without much thought aloud to the empty, dark study:  
"This is the story of a girl and how she obtained the Seven Stars of Byakko. And if whoever reads this book reads to the story's end, the spell contained within the book shall give them the power to grant a wish, just like the girl in the story. For the moment the first page is turned, the story itself becomes real."  
Suzuno felt her hand tremble ever so slightly as she folded over the first page. For some odd reason she didn't like the words written there in the book. Flashes of parental conversations she had overheard went through her mind.  
_ "But dear, do you think your friend, Okuda, really was telling the truth? Priestesses and turtle gods, it all sounds a little...crazy to me. His daughter disappearing into a book..."  
"Seven Celestial Warriors? I can't believe you're actually telling me this. It's a waist of time, banning Suzuno from the study, what could happen to her?"  
"STAY AWAY FROM THIS BOOK!"_  
  
A bright light distracted Suzuno from her thoughts, causing her to focus on the environment around her. A luminous white glow was surrounding her body and the shelves around her were beginning to fade away. For a moment she thought she could hear the faint sound of her father pulling into the driveway after a long day at work.  
And then everything vanished entirely. Suzuno felt herself falling into the nothingness of the vivid radiance. She could see only two other things above her. One was the book hovering over her, growing smaller and smaller as she fell away. The second was the love note, fluttering away from Suzuno's outstretched hand...  
Suzuno's eyes were glued tightly shut; she didn't want to see what had happened. She wanted to wake up in bed...  
"Umm...Miss?"  
The unfamiliar voice was close; Suzuno could feel the breath of whomever it was speaking.  
"Miss? you ummm, remove yourself? Your kind of...in the way of my worship?"  
The pig-tailed girl gradually wrenched one of her eyes open then the other. Kneeling down before her, hands clasped in a prayer-like pose, stood a burly old man. He was staring at her with a...curious...look on his face, trying to hold his temper in.  
Suzuno suddenly snapped up in surprise. She rotated her head to observe her surroundings. It was a small shrine, with scented candles and torches lining the walls. And Suzuno was sitting in a statue of...  
"T...Tiger!" the girl leapt forward past the man and pointed with a finger at the gold feline figure. It took her a second of pointing and gasping to realize the sculpture was a fake.  
"A...A...Are you alright, Miss?"  
"Huh?" Suzuno stood up and brushed her green skirt off. Instead of answering she decided to figure out where she was, "can you tell me where –this- is? And how I got here?"  
The man blinked and massaged his eyes a couple times as if trying to rid them of some small fly. But after he stared at her for a while he answered, "well...you fell...from up there." He indicated to the wide ceiling with one bony finger. "As for where you are, you are in the Sairou Palace. This is a very small shrine used to pay tribute to the great God, Byakko." He turned to face the giant cat he had just been paying homage to, "nothing like the real shrine though." He added.  
_ That book, I'm inside of it huh? It doesn't seem as dangerous as father went on about. This old man seems kind enough. Suzuno thought what about that giant turtle god I heard mother talking about..._  
"Sir, do you know of any giant turtles that umm...wonder...around here?" Suzuno wasn't entirely sure how to ask the question, and she stuttered quite a bit.  
"Giant Turtles! What in Byakko! The only giant turtle I know of is the Guardian God of the North, Genbu."  
_ Genbu Grotto, the place where Takiko and Mr. Okuda both passed away._  
"Of course he really isn't a turtle, more like a snake and turtle put together. A 'snurtle' so to speak..." the elder grinned, evidently happy with the new creature he had just created in his head.  
Suzuno heard the man continue speaking, but she was too busy trying to figure out the link between what she had overheard her parents saying and this new place she had winded up in.  
"Hey, do you know anything about 'Priestesses', or 'Celestial Warriors'?" Suzuno tapped the man on the shoulder.  
"But then again you could also call it a 'take' or a 'surtle'..."  
"Hey! Old man!" Suzuno yelled into his ear, her patience melting away, "you know anything about Priestesses or Celestial Warriors?!?!"  
The old man blinked, his grin turning into a scowl, "my name is Tuchikagawada, and I'm not that old. Only 87. About your Priestesses and Celestial Warriors," he spoke with an obvious sneer, "don't you know the old legends? Even a dimwit girl like you should know something about it! It's been all the talk about a girl from another world appearing to save us..." Tuchikagawada trailed off into irrelevant facts again.  
"I'm not dimwitted, I'm at the top ten of my high school! I might even be lucky enough to attend college. Are you listening? Tell me about these Priestesses, please?"  
Tuchi (we'll call him that for now) looked up and smacked Suzuno full on in the head, giving the girl an unexpected surprise. "Where are you from? A spy from enemy territory hundreds of miles away...an escapee from the asylum?"  
"Oh, no..." Suzuno waved her hands about in innocence, "I'm not an enemy spy, I promise. I'm from Japan, you know big long island? Shaped kind of like a crumpled pepper? You know, in Asia? Off the coast of China?" Suzuno scraped the facts off, making her realize how very little she actually knew about her own country.  
"What in Byakko are you going on about? Are you saying you're the girl of legend who will come from another world and save the entire empire?" Tuchi brought his chubby little face up very close to Suzuno's so he could look her in the eye.  
"M...Me? S...save the empire?" Suzuno became worried about this whole thing, why did she have to pick up that book? "Oh no, I'm, I'm just a tourist come to look at Sailmo, I mean Seiko, I mean..." sweat beads ran down her face for the second time that day.  
"Sairou." Tuchi mumbled unenthusiastically, correcting the newcomer. "Come with me, I think you'd better see the emperor."  
"Em....Emperor!?!?!?" Suzuno screamed, "but I didn't do anything wrong! Hey! You! Let go of my ear!"  
Despite her kicking and biting and clawing, the brunette could not manage to escape the surprisingly strong grasp of the elderly man.  
  
Tuchi lead Suzuno through the winding, large hallways of what had to be Sairou's Palace. Finally they stopped in front of a large golden gate, decorated in massive carvings of soldiers and tigers. Only then did the man released his grip on Suzuno's ear.  
"I've brought a girl to see the Emperor." He whispered indiscreetly to the guard at the gate in front of him, "says she's from another world."  
The guard eyed Suzuno with speculation, but on seeing her clothing he nodded and permitted them.  
"Come on." Tuchi grasped Suzuno's hand in his locked palms and yanked her through the open doors.  
"Cut it out, why do we need to see the Emperor?" the girl complained, rubbing her red ear.  
"Emperor Tagawa, presenting Elder Priest Tuchikagawada Kamori and..." a man standing at the side announcing there arrival paused, "a girl who claims to be from another world."  
"Suzuno!" the brunette spoke softly to the announcer, "Suzuno Oosugi, and I never claimed to be from anywhere...!"  
  
"What are you telling me, Tuchikagawada?" A rough voice spoke from the shadows ahead, "you found our savior, the one who will save us all?"  
"W...what?!" Suzuno finally freed her hand from Tuchikagawada's grasp, "I'm never said anything about saving anyone..."  
"Where did you say you were from?" the Emperor ignored Suzuno's babbling and began to question her.  
Suzuno sighed and stared up at him in defeat, "Japan."  
  
The Emperor and his advisor mumbled something to quiet for anyone to hear before his Majesty continued.  
"What's your name, girl?"  
"Suzuno, Suzuno Oosugi." She didn't think it was a good idea to give her name out, but she was getting awfully tired of explaining herself over and over.  
"Ah, Suzuno Oosugi. Have you heard of the old legends, of a girl appearing from another world in a time of need to save all of Sairou."  
_ What's going on!? Old legends...that must be what this whole Priestess thing is about...I really should be worrying about how to get home...maybe this Emperor knows how to send me back._  
"This man..." Suzuno couldn't recall the old priest's name, so she left it out, "told me something about it. Priestesses and Gods and Celestial Warriors. But besides that..."  
"You want to go home?" Emperor Tagawa finished for her. "I'm sorry, I know of no way."  
No way home? Why didn't I start worrying about getting home ten minutes ago? I might be stuck here now...  
"But, Suzuno Oosugi. We do have something to request of you. I have heard what my advisor has to say and we both agree that you should become the Priestess of Byakko, the Savior of Sairou."  
_ Me!? Isn't that a little fast? Priestess, I don't really believe him, I just want to go home, now. I wonder what a Priestess has to do, anyways. I suppose it couldn't hurt to ask...  
_ "Your Majesty, exactly what is the role of the Priestess?"  
Emperor Tagawa almost began to laugh, until he realized Suzuno really didn't know the role of the Priestess. He gave her a straight out answer, "The Priestess, is supposed to gather Seven Celestial Warriors, and then summon Byakko, the Great Tiger God. Then she gets three wishes. One being to save Sairou."  
"Save Sairou? What's wrong with it?"  
"An enemy opposes us. A tricky one. They want to conquer Sairou and have been spreading an awful disease. But that's only the Priestess's concern."  
What would I wish for? What do I want most in the world? There's my friend, Saku. She's had that cancer problem most of her life. I could save her. And then...I could get home!  
"I'll think about it, and then I'll give you my answer in the morning. I like to think these kinds of things through."  
The Emperor seemed pleased enough. He knew the only way for her to go home was to wish her way back.  
"Then you are excused, Suzuno Oosugi."

---------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Suzuno Oosugi, have you made up your mind on whether or not you shall consent to our request?"  
A girl stood before the man addressing her, looking up with determined olive green eyes. She had thought the matter over all night, weighing the consequences of her actions.  
"Emperor Tagawa," the girl, Suzuno, spoke in a polite tone of voice, "I, Suzuno Oosugi, accept your request and shall become Sairou's savior and priestess."  
A smiled flashed across the man sitting in front of Suzuno's face. Emperor Tagawa arose and quietly whispered something to his advisor. Then he turned back to Suzuno and stated with odd simplicity, "before you start your journey to assemble the Seven Stars of the great god, Byakko, do you have any questions?"  
Suzuno pulled her braided pigtails over one shoulder and nodded sternly. Last night she had thought all of this through very thoroughly, "you told me an enemy opposes you, although, you made no mention of who they are. I would like to be informed of such things before I...journey..." she hesitated and let out an unnoticeable sigh, she wasn't use to being so formal.  
"Very well, I suppose it's only fair." Tagawa reseated himself in his silver plated throne and stared off at the wall above Suzuno's right ear.  
"This land is separated into four main countries, Hokkan, Kutou, Konan, and Sairou. However, the land extends past these main borders into unclaimed territories. Areas that aren't part of the four countries, but not large or strong enough to become a country themselves." He went on without pause, "One such group to the southeast of Sairou has been gathering. The majority of the territories worship Seiryu, the God of Kutou, though a select few worship Genbu, God of Hokkan. They have been making plans to overthrow the Sairou empire in the name of Seiryu for quite some time now, so long, we never really planned they'd do anything.  
"That was until a few months ago when sixteen towns on the borders of southern Sairou were taken over and the residing citizens captured as slaves. Legend has it that a girl from another world will appear and save our empire in a time of need, which is where you are needed. We suspect they are aligned with Kutou. That country is always causing trouble for everyone." He looked at Suzuno with piercing bronze eyes, "does that answer your question?"  
Suzuno uttered a quick 'yes' before turning away from Tagawa to the group of random soldiers and townsfolk who had gathered before the Emperor to see him send out Sairou's new Priestess. She let out a long breath of air before walking past the group. Suzuno still wasn't entirely sure this whole thing was real. She would've been completely convinced it was a dream, that was if it hadn't been for Takiko and her father...had it only been yesterday she rediscovered that old, Chinese book in her father's study? The Universe of the Four Gods...  
"Miss Suzuno?" a women dressed in the white and blue robes of Sairou addressed the new priestess.  
"Yes?"  
"The Emperor requests that you leave to begin gathering the Celestial Warriors tonight, under cover of dark. Since he doesn't want to make to big of a commotion about it, he will have a single guard accompany you."  
"Tonight? That's a little soon but...tell him I'll be ready. May I ask the guards name who will be accompanying me?"  
"I'm afraid I'm not sure which one it is. I assure you he will be efficient enough for your safety and needs."  
Suzuno nodded, "thank you."

---------------------------------  
"Lady Suzuno, my name is Jin Asui. I will be accompanying you on your journey tonight."  
Suzuno looked up in surprise at the man bowing down before her. She couldn't make out most of his physical features because of the thick, brown cloak he was draped in. The cloak covered his entire body, with the exception of his hazel eyes, nose, and mouth.  
"Oh, hello." Suzuno was a bit startled that he had addressed her so formally, "Suzuno, is just fine. If we're going to journey together, we shouldn't be so formal."  
Jin closed the door behind himself, "that's a relief. I'm not very good at the polite stuff. I'm only an Imperial Guard."  
"I'm not very good at it either." The girl smiled, "how soon until we leave?"  
"Are you ready?"  
"Yes."  
"Then right now, if you please. The Emperor wants us to make as much ground as possible before nightfall comes again tomorrow."  
Suzuno followed him outside and up to the stables. A single horse stood, illuminated in the moonlight. Packs of food and blankets were secured tightly to the saddle by ropes.  
"Her name is Chin Mien." The guard patted the ebony snout of the beast. "She's very gentle." Jin hoisted himself on top of the large stallion. "One of the best in the Palace, maybe even the best in Sairou." He grabbed Suzuno's hand and helped her up behind him, "hold on tightly, Priestess. We have a long way to go before reaching the next town, where we are suspected to find the first warrior, Tatara."  
_Tatara, the first one. I wonder what he's like...  
_  
Seconds turned to minutes and minutes turned to hours. Sunrise was only a few moments away.  
"Priestess?" Jin looked back at the girl behind him without actually moving his head.  
"Yes?"  
  
"Take this." He handed her something from inside his cloak. It was a white rolled up piece of paper, tied together by a golden string.  
"What is it?" Suzuno held the bundle above her head, examining it carefully.  
"Byakko's Scroll, also known as Byakko's Universe of the Four Gods. It was given to the very first Emperor of Sairou. The scroll is supposed to give you clues to where the Celestial Warriors are."  
"Hmmm." Suzuno brought the scroll down and untied the string. Scanning over it she looked at the first two clues written on the parchment.  
"Chance and Angel. That's what it says here on the scroll. What's that supposed to mean?"  
"That's what the Priestess is supposed to figure out, I guess." Jin laughed and kicked the horse to go faster, "we should be there soon..." Jin's voice quieted as the stallion suddenly halted.  
"What's wrong?" Suzuno gazed up at the boy in front of her, "did something happen?"  
"I think we're going the wrong way."  
"But we've been following the road, and," she took out a map one of the servant's had provided her with earlier, "I'm sure we're going to the right way. According to this, we should be arriving in Boushen, Sairou any minute now."  
"Boushen?" Jin let out a worried sigh, "that's a known town for gangs, but more then that there are tons of gamblers. They perform dangerous games for money, usually risking someone's life on the bet as well."  
Suzuno grabbed her neck as she tried to swallow. Her mouth was dry, and she spoke in a hoarse whisper, "bet...lives?"  
  
"Yeah, but I think we should take our chances. It'll take too long to go all the way back, and we need to rest. It's not the most hospitable place, but it's the best we got. Boushen isn't totally bad, there are a few decent hotels and stuff. Don't worry, I'm here if anything happens."  
  
The girl didn't say anything; instead she just watched the town of Boushen come closer and closer into view as they approached. It was still dark, but rays of orange and golden sunshine were beginning to flow over the brims of clouds. The sky reminded Suzuno of a fountain that her family used to have in their backyard.  
"We can stop here." Jin helped Suzuno and himself off of Chin Mien. "Wait inside this inn, Priestess. I'm going to tie up the horse in the stables down the road."  
Suzuno was about to object, but complied with his directions and found herself inside the inn. Groups of people sat laughing and singing and chatting around large, round tables.  
As she wandered in, no one really paid any mind to her, much to the girl's relief. That was, no one did until she bumped into one of the men seated at a table.  
"Who do we have here?" the man turned around and clutched Suzuno's arm. "What a precious girl, we could have some fun with someone like this.  
"F...fun?" Suzuno spoke too quietly for anyone to hear, but the look of fear on her face showed what she felt without any words needed.  
  
(Half way marker! I'll even sing you a little song: Doo doo da da doo dadadooooooo)  
  
The man, a leader of one of Boushen's top gangs, brought the Priestess of Byakko closer to him. "Lot's of it, won't we boys?"  
"Stop!"  
The man released Priestess in surprise, pushing her harshly back against the wall.  
"And who would you be?"  
"Kihara Tagawa, a fellow gambler like yourself." The speaker was a short, slender female. Her violet eyes flashed under a crown of silver hair. She brushed her long braid over one shoulder, "you like gambling, why don't we play a little game for the girl?"  
_Tagawa!? Does that mean she's related to...  
_ "You're pretty fine too, aren't you?" the gang leader turned to Kihara. "Alright. We'll play a game. If you win you can have the girl...if I win, I get the both of you."  
"Fine by me. I challenged, so I get to choose the game...it'll be simple. I have three cups over there. I'll put a rock under one and then switch them around. If you can figure out which one doesn't have the rock under it, you win."  
"Deal."  
"Deal, let's start."  
  
Kihara took out a smooth, red pebble and placed it under one of the cups. "Watch closely now." As her hands worked busily rearranging the objects, she eyed Suzuno, who was being held by two, large gang members.  
Finally the cups went to rest and Kihara glared up at the man in front of her, "choose. But remember the rules of the gam..."  
"I've played this game a million times before, woman! Don't bother me with rules."  
He picked up a cup and turned it over. Underneath lay the red pebble.  
"Too bad, you lost." Kihara checked her nails, rubbing them on her shirt before continuing, "looks like I get the girl."  
"WHAT?!?! I found the rock, I win!"  
"I said you had to find the cup that didn't conceal the stone. Weren't you listening to me? You're a pretty cruddy gambler." The silver- haired girl walked up and grabbed Suzuno by the arm, "I'll be taking my leave now."  
"You edited Playing edited dirty tricks on me won't work!" He yelled after the two running out the door, "don't just stand there you idiots, go after them!"  
Kihara ran holding her companion's wrist, to assure that Suzuno was following her close behind.  
"You came with a friend, right?"  
"Jin!" Suzuno tried to turn back, remembering the guard, "we can't just leave him!"  
"He'll be fine, he has a horse. But unless we try something dramatic, we're not going to be able to outrun these guys."  
"What do you mean dramatic?!" Suzuno had to raise her voice to be heard over the noise of loud, drunken shouts.  
"Like this." Kihara swept Suzuno off of her feet, holding her securely in her arms. A loud splitting noise, like a tree was being cut down, and then a flurry of snow white feathers. In the next instant two large wings arched out of Kihara's back.  
Suzuno looked up and noticed a symbol glowing in white on the girl's left cheek. She wasn't positive, but she was pretty sure it meant 'stomach'. Suzuno didn't have long to stare at the symbol, however, as the riot of men below halted, throwing swords and forks and whatever they had up at the two girls in weak attempt.  
Once the gang was out of site, Suzuno looked up at her rescuer, "who are you?"  
"Huh?" Kihara glanced down at her, "I'm Kihara Tagawa, cousin to the Emperor and famous gambler of Boushen, Sairou. However, I'm also known as Kokie of the Byakko Seven, Priestess."  
Kokie let Suzuno down from her arms as they landed on the ground. The surrounding forest was set on a hill that looked down upon Boushen and then further back was the Imperial City. Thick, sweet-smelling pines grew out in random places, their bases covered in soft moss. Just like the forests in the real world.  
"I get it now," Suzuno pulled out Byakko's Universe of the Four Gods, "Chance and Angel, the scroll was describing you. It tells me about the warrior's personality and abilities, I guess." She rolled the scroll back up and tucked it safely away, "but how did you know I was the Priestess?"  
  
"I figured as much, what with your foreign clothes and the rumors and such."  
_ Yes! I found the first warrior! Japnese Home, my dear friend Saku, here I come!  
_  
"I left a note for your friend, Jin, I think you said his name was. He'll probably be here tomorrow morning, maybe earlier, depends how fast things quiet down down there. Don't worry; if he tells them he's an Imperial Guard like I think he is, they'll let him go. They may be a bunch of gangsters, but they still have at least a little integrity towards the Empire and Byakko, you know?"  
"I suppose so..." Suzuno let out a heavy sigh, "I'm exhausted, will we set up camp until Jin comes along?"  
"Yup." Kokie's wings had folded back in, but two large tears were left where they sprouted out of her back. "Besides, after I use my power of flight it takes me a couple hours to rejuvenate my strength."  
Soon they had a camp set up and a fire blazing. Since the food and blankets were on the horse back in Boushen, Kokie took the liberty of catching a killing a few roaming birds. How she did it Suzuno wouldn't discover until much later.  
  
"Wow, the sun is setting already?" Suzuno looked up, it seemed just a few seconds ago she had left the Palace in the middle of the night to go and fulfill her new duty as Priestess of Byakko.  
"Eh, what did you say? It's late, go to bed!" Kokie yawned and fell back into slumber.  
  
----  
"Hmmm...what do we have here? Two new customers who'll discover the abilities of Lan the Blinking Thief!"

The Shortened Story of Takiko:

Takiko was sucked into the book, went on her journey, successfully summoned the great god Genbu, then went back to the real world. However, after Takiko had made her first two wishes she was in so much pain from Genbu consuming her body that her father couldn't stand it. He said if his daughter was going to die it would be by his hand instead of Genbu's power. The next day he murdered himself and his daughter at a location now known as Genbu Grotto. Before Takiko's father's death, he left Suzuno's dad a note that instructed him to take care of the Universe of the Four Gods and warned him of it's dangers.


End file.
